Financial Management in the Sport Industry

Now, in a fully revised and updated new edition, this textbook introduces the fundamentals of sport finance and the principles of sound financial management in the sport industry.

Covering the topic from the perspective of the sport management practitioner, this book begins by introducing the basics of finance and the tools and techniques of financial quantification, using examples from the sport industry to show how to apply these principles in practice. It then examines key aspects of financial management in sport, including interpreting financial statements, debt and equity financing, capital budgeting, facility financing, economic impact, risk and return, and time value of money. The final part of this book explores financial management in four sectors of the industry: professional sport, public sector and non-profit sport, collegiate athletics, and international sport. Every chapter includes useful features such as sidebars, concept checks, practice problems, case analysis, and case questions to help students engage more deeply with financial techniques and to encourage problem-solving skills. This updated fourth edition includes expanded coverage of important topics such as women’s sport, the influence of sport governance on the business environment, private equity and crowdfunding, financial reporting standards, qualitative assessment of risk, and esports.

This is an essential textbook for any undergraduate or postgraduate course in sport finance and an invaluable supplement to any course in sport business or sport management. It is also an important reference for all sport management practitioners looking to improve their understanding of finance.

This book is accompanied by updated ancillary materials, including an instructor’s manual, PowerPoint slides, an image bank, and Excel spreadsheets and data files to enable students to work through the numbers for cases in this book.

Matthew T. Brown is Professor and Chair for the Department of Sport and Entertainment Management at the University of South Carolina, USA. He has served as the Chief Financial Officer of the Southern Ohio Copperheads, Treasurer of the Board of Directors of the Southern Ohio Collegiate Baseball Club, and Treasurer of the North American Society for Sport Management. In 2018, he received the Garth Paton Distinguished Service Award from the North American Society for Sport Management.

Daniel A. Rascher is Academic Director and Professor in the Sport Management Program at the University of San Francisco, USA. He has been named Research Fellow of the North American Society for Sport Management and is the Founder and President of SportsEconomics, LLC. He has also served on the editorial boards of a number of sport management journals, including Case Studies in Sport Management, Journal of Sport Management, and Sport Management Review.

Mark S. Nagel is Professor in the Department of Sport and Entertainment Management at the University of South Carolina, USA, and is an adjunct faculty member at the University of San Francisco and St. Mary’s College of California. He has served as Treasurer for the North American Society for Sport Management and the Sport and Recreation Law Association, and has served as the Associate Director of the College Sport Research Institute since its creation in 2006.

Chad D. McEvoy is Professor and Dean of the College of Applied Science and Technology at Illinois State University, USA. He served as President of the Sport Marketing Association and was Founding Editor of Case Studies in Sport Management. His professional affiliations include the North American Society for Sport Management and the Sport Marketing Association. He has authored several textbooks in the sport management discipline, and his research has been featured in more than 100 media outlets.